In August 1996 I became a certified
SCUBA diver. After Dan and I had gone on a trip
to Aruba in 1994 and done some snorkeling in their beautiful turquoise
waters, I wanted to learn to dive. Well we took lessons up at Aquatic
Specialties, in Merrimack NH. We had a great instructor and really enjoyed
the classes (we took semi-private lessons; it was just me and Dan in the
class).

We did our certification
"out-dives" in New England! Tim (our instructor) and Sherri
(Divemaster) took us to Isle of Shoals on the New Hampshire/Maine coast
line, we dove near Duck Island. It was a beautiful, clear, warm day and
the dives were more fun than I had anticipated. All the starfish, urchins,
and lobsters were just unbelievable. I figured diving in New England would
be dark, scary and really cold (and it was), but if I survived it (which
I did), everything else I encountered would be a piece of cake.

I wouldn't mind doing more New England
diving. Despite the cold and limited visibility it offers, it was more
beautiful than I imagined it would be.